Bay Area/Northern California friends: I am participating an event this coming Sunday at Handcraft Studio School in Emeryville, CA. I will have THREE tables of stuff for sale, including TONS of vintage ephemera organized in lovely “lots” (vintage paper goods & photographs), art books, gently used and some new art supplies, some fabric and other random goodies. Everything is priced to sell!

Come on by Sunday from 11 to 5 pm (or whenever I sell out, so get there early). Other vendors will be selling stuff too!! Address above & parking in this neighborhood is easy.

Please note: I am NOT selling these goods online; only at this sale, so please no inquiries.

Friends, I’ve released a new phone & device case today! It’s pictured above (on an iPhone) and below (on a Samsung phone) and it’s available for just about any phone or device under the sun. You can purchase this particular design here and see all of my phone/device case designs here.

Friends, there are just five more days to place your holiday orders in my shop! I’ve got loads of signed books, prints, notebooks, and small original paintings for sale. Head over here to place your order before end of the day, December 16! And if you don’t see anything there, you can check out all the other places my work is sold. Thank you for supporting my work!

Don’t forget: this is your last week to shop in my Etsy store before the holidays! My shop will be closed from Tuesday evening of next week until early January. All remaining orders will ship Wednesday, December 17.

Good news! Just in time, I have added a new print to the shop, pictured above. You can snatch it up here.

You may recall that earlier this year I wrote about my friend Danielle’s (aka The Jealous Curator) fantastic book Creative Block. And recently 20 artists from the book were curated by Danielle into a show at Bedford Gallery: From Blog to Book to Gallery. Last night I attended the opening, and it is a beautiful show with many amazing works. Here are just a few of my favorite pieces(too many to photograph!) and my own work down at the bottom of the post:

Kate Pugsley.

Stephanie Vovas’ large scale photographs.

Large scale Jenny Hart.

Danielle Krysa.

Martha Rich.

Hollie Chastain.

Jennifer Davis.

Leah Giberson.

Aris Moore.

Lisa Golightly.

Me!

All six of my pieces in the show.

My hummingbird.

All work from the show (if not already sold) is available through Bedford Gallery. The gallery does not have an online shop, but you can call or email at any time to purchase with a credit card. If you are local to the Bay Area, the show will be up through February 1, and I highly recommend a visit! Here are the seven artists (including Danielle) who were able to attend the opening last night: Kate Pugsley, Lisa Golightly, Stephanie Vovas, Danielle Krysa, me, Leah Giberson & Trey Speegle.

Almost two years ago I became acquainted with Betsy Cordes. I was looking for an expert on art direction and licensing to interview for my book Art Inc and through friends I discovered Betsy. Since then we’ve become good friends and collaborators (and she is an expert interviewee in both my book Art Inc and my class Become a Working Artist). One day about a year ago Betsy and I were having lunch, and she told me about an exciting project she was working on — to put back into publication a long out-of-print book called Mr. Dog’s Christmas at the Hollow Tree Inn. She told me the story of the book and its meaning to her family and about the lengths she was stretching to bring the book back to life (it was an incredible endeavor, as you will see). I was so inspired by Betsy’s story and just last week saw the book for the first time (which is now for sale) and was so mesmerized by its beauty that I decided it would be a great story to share here. I hope you enjoy this interview with Betsy about Mr. Dog’s Christmas at the Hollow Tree Inn (scroll to the bottom for purchase details!).

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Lisa: Mr. Dog’s Christmas at the Hollow Tree Inn was originally published in 1898! How and why did you come to bring this old story back to life?

Betsy: That’s right! The author, Albert Bigelow Paine, wrote the story back at the turn of the last century. (Cool fact: Paine was also Mark Twain’s good friend and biographer!) Mr. Dog’s Christmas has been read aloud on Christmas Eve in my family since the early 1940s, first by my grandparents to my dad and his brother. My dad’s been reading it to me and my brother our whole lives and our children have now grown up with Mr. Dog, too. We’re kind of nuts about it… Christmas just wouldn’t be Christmas without Mr. Dog! I’ve even been known to ask my dad for a private reading over the phone, on those few Christmases I haven’t been able to spend with my folks.

It’s always surprised us that the story isn’t more widely known. Although it was written over a century ago, it’s timeless. It’s just a really charming tale about the worldly and rather mischievous Mr. Dog, who decides to surprise his friends at the Hollow Tree Inn (Mr. Crow, Mr. ‘Coon, and Mr. ‘Possum) by playing Santa Claus. He goes to great lengths to pull it off, and treats his friends to a beautiful experience. Until our edition, the story had been out of print for decades and it was a couple years ago that my brother, Jason, had the brilliant idea to republish it with new illustrations. We talked about it a bit and decided we really wanted to do it ourselves, rather than try to get an established publisher interested. We felt super protective of the story because of our tradition, but we don’t own it; it’s in the public domain. We didn’t want someone else to bring it back in a way that didn’t please us!

As an art director, I knew I could find and work with an artist to bring the story to life in glorious color, and I had just enough experience with design, print production and promotion to feel comfortable managing the project myself. Truth be told, it’s become a far bigger endeavor than I ever imagined. Honestly it’s been like a second full-time job for me, but I’ve learned so much through the process that’s helpful in my work with artists, many of whom also want to publish their own books or launch Kickstarter campaigns. I’m feeling really grateful for the opportunities this project has given me.

Lisa: The book is beautifully illustrated by well known illustrator Adam McCauley. How did he come to illustrate the book & what was it about his style that appealed to you for this project?

Betsy: I know, aren’t his drawings incredible? We are so fortunate to have him as our illustrator and I credit the Makeshift Society for bringing that about. When I started my search for an illustrator, I sent an email to the group and Adam’s wife, Cynthia Wigginton, was the first to respond, saying, “You might want to check out my husband Adam’s work.” Well, as soon as I saw his portfolio I felt he could strike that perfect balance between old and new; a lot of his work has a vintage quality about it while being entirely contemporary. As it turned out, Adam felt a great affinity for the material; it put him in mind of some of his favorite book artists, including Lewis Carroll. Because of the era and flavor of the story he saw an opportunity to work in pen and ink, a medium he loves but doesn’t often get to use for his children’s book work. Really, when I saw Adam’s first illustrations for the book, that’s when this project became so much bigger than I ever imagined. I immediately felt a larger sense of responsibility because of the beauty and rightness of his art.

Lisa: The book is also gorgeously designed! Tell us a bit about the vision for the book design, who designed it, and all of the special elements of the design.

Betsy: Thank you! I’m so proud of it, and it’s been a great collaboration between me, Adam, and—in another huge stroke of luck—his wife Cynthia! As it turns out, Cynthia is a designer and she works with Adam on many of his books. I always knew that I wanted the whole look and feel of the book to reference the Victorian era of the story. I wanted a cloth-covered book, with embossing and foil and those intricate design details that we see in books from that time. Cynthia knew just how to handle it; her choice of type, the gorgeous decorative frame that surrounds the text pages, the faux bois patterning, antiqued look of the pages, and other details are all so spot on. I’ve come to appreciate what a special and particular skill book design is, from a technical perspective as well. Knowing what you want a book to look like is one thing; being able to execute it and deliver it in printable form for mass production is quite another thing. I’m so glad to have had Cynthia on this project, and to have had the support of a really amazing print broker who shepherded it through overseas production.

Lisa: What do you hope people experience from owning and reading Mr. Dog’s Christmas at the Hollow Tree Inn?

Betsy: You know, I just feel so incredibly lucky to have had this story and this tradition in my family for so long and I hope that our readers get to enjoy the feeling of anticipation, togetherness and continuity that we experience with it. The story is perfectly timeless. To me, it’s at least as appealing as cherished classics like Clement C. Moore’s poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (aka “Twas the Night Before Christmas”) and others—stories that have been part of Christmas celebrations for decades.

Lisa: Where can people purchase Mr. Dog’s Christmas at the Hollow Tree Inn?

Betsy: For now, the best place is through our website, MrDogsChristmas.com. The first edition is a pretty luxurious one, so we had to keep the production run small. If it takes off (fingers crossed!) we’d love to do a bigger run and have much wider distribution next year. But I gotta say, if it speaks to you, grab a copy of this first edition, because the look and feel of it are so special. I imagine and hope it will become an heirloom for many.

Lisa: I can vouch for that! It’s just gorgeous. Thank you, Betsy!

Incidentally, Adam McCauley will be signing copies of the book this coming Saturday, December 6 at Rare Device in Noe Valley in SF. You can pick up your own copy of the first edition there!

Most of the time when I write about purchasing my products here on my blog, I’m directing you to my Etsy shop. But today I’ve put together a little gift guide with a few of my paintings & products that you can’t get there. Thank you as always for supporting my work!

ORIGINAL ABSTRACT PAINTINGS

Many of you have been asking where you can purchase original abstract works from me. Five of my paintings (all small/medium in size) are now for sale through Uprise Art’s shop. All prices include shipping, and I am also happy to frame any of these pieces in 1/4 inch birch for the buyer. Go get the while they last!

PHONE, COMPUTER and DEVICE CASES & SKINS

Pictured above are just a few of my designs! You can order cases or skins for just about any phone, device or computer. More designs in my Nuvango shop!

STATIONERY

Chronicle Books carries three of my stationery items:

You can find the Birch Flexi-journal here, the Le Foret Notecard Set here, and the Forests Notecard Set here.

Those of you who follow me on Instagram may recall this photo that I posted a while back. Many of you were taking guesses at what I was designing, and I am excited to reveal that I was creating a bandana for Nativen, a New York women’s clothing company (vintage & new). You can purchase the 21 inch square bandana here and see the other artist bandanas here.

It’s that gift giving time of the year again and I’ve got two great prints over at Little Collector that make perfect gifts. They come in three different sizes (as large as 20×24) and you can even order the prints framed if you like! Best of all? Shipping is FREE on U.S. orders!

Friends, I’m very excited to announce that I am now selling abstract works through New York gallery Uprise Art. You can find my available pieces here and read an interview they did with me here.

I am thrilled to be working with this gallery to show & sell my abstract work (see larger images below for what we’re offering now) and to be listed next to such an amazing cadre of artists on their roster.

Friends, I’m have a 15% off EARLYBIRD holiday sale in my Etsy Shop starting today through December 2!

Here’s how it works: go to my Etsy Shop, select your items, and enter EARLYBIRD in the coupon code section for 15% off.

I have added EIGHTEEN original pieces to my shop, so if you are interested in original works, now is the time to purchase.

If there is a book you would like that you don’t see in my shop, that means it is temporarily sold out. I should be getting more coloring books in stock by the end of November, so stay tuned! You can get all of my books on Amazon as well.

As always, email me or send me an Etsy Convo if you have any questions at all!

Friends, I’ve added a new phone/laptop/device case/skin to my shop! This one is called “Tornado” and it comes in a variety of shapes and sizes for tons of different phones, laptops and devices. You can get this cover here or peruse my entire selection of designs here.